County fire ban still in effect on private lands

Yavapai County officials have decided to continue the county's seasonal fire-use ban until monsoon rains become more widespread.

The county's restrictions cover all unincorporated private land, unless a local fire agency has decided to lift the ban.

That means residents in the Central Yavapai Fire District, Mayer Fire District and Verde Valley are out of the fire ban, for example, because CYFD, Mayer and Verde Valley fire agencies have decided their regions have received enough rain and humidity to end their bans. The City of Prescott and Groom Creek also lifted their bans Wednesday in conjunction with all the national forests in Arizona.

County Emergency Management Coordinator Nick Angiolillo has discussed the issue with several rural fire departments and many remain concerned about the fire danger in their regions, especially lower-elevation areas.